Natalie Wood - Biography - IMDb Natalie Wood Biography Showing all 98 items Jump to: Overview (5) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (3) | Trade Mark (3) | Trivia (67) | Personal Quotes (9) | Salary (10) Overview (5) 5' (1.52 m) Mini Bio (1) Natalie Wood was born on July 20, 1938, in San Francisco, California, as Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko. Her parents, Maria Stepanovna (Zudilova) and Nikolai Stepanovich Zakharenko, were Russian-born émigrés, of Ukrainian and Russian descent, who spoke barely comprehensible English; they changed the family name to Gurdin after becoming US citizens. When she was just four years old, Natalie appeared in her first film, Happy Land (1943). A production company had come to Santa Rosa, California, where the Gurdins were living and Natalie won a bit part of a crying little girl who had just dropped her ice cream cone. With stars in her eyes for her daughter, Mrs.

Gurdin packed the family and moved south to Los Angeles in the hopes that more films would come her daughter's way. Unfortunately they did not, at least not at first, and the family continued to scrape by much as they had done in Santa Rosa. In 1946 Natalie tested for a role in Tomorrow Is Forever (1946). She was only seven at the time, and flunked the screen test. Natalie's mother convinced the studio heads to give her another test, and this time she was convincing enough that they gave Natalie the role. In 1947's Miracle on 34th Street (1947), she won the hearts of movie patrons around the country as Susan Walker in a film that is considered a Christmas classic to this day. Natalie stayed very busy as a child actress, appearing in no less than 18 films in the late 1940s and early 1950s. When she was 16 Natalie appeared in Rebel Without a Cause (1955) with James Dean , Sal Mineo and Dennis Hopper .

She played Judy, a rebellious high school student who was more concerned with hanging out with the wrong crowd than being a sweet teenager like her contemporaries. The result was her first Academy Award nomination and a defining moment in her development as an adult actress. She appeared in Splendor in the Grass (1961), West Side Story (1961), Gypsy (1962), and Love with the Proper Stranger (1963). While Natalie was reported to be unhappy making "West Side Story", the film did win Oscars for Best Picture, Best Direction, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Supporting Actress. In short, it was a smash hit. Although she wasn't nominated for an Academy Award in that one, she did receive nominations for her roles in "Splendor in the Grass" and "Love with the Proper Stranger". After This Property Is Condemned (1966) in 1966, Natalie stayed away from Hollywood for three years to have time for herself and to consider where she was going. When she did return her star quality had not diminished a bit, as evidenced by her playing Carol Sanders in the hit Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969).

From that point on Natalie didn't work as much. She made a few television appearances, but nothing of substance with the exception of the TV mini-series From Here to Eternity (1979). After making The Last Married Couple in America (1980), Natalie began work on Brainstorm (1983) in the fall of 1981 with Christopher Walken . She did not live to see it released. On November 29, 1981, she was sailing on the yacht she shared with her husband, Robert Wagner, and their friend Walken, when Natalie fell in the ocean while trying to board the dinghy tied up alongside the yacht and drowned. She was 43 years old. Natalie had made 56 films for TV and the silver screen and it's hard to say what she could have done while making her comeback. "Brainstorm" was finally released in 1983. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Denny Jackson Spouse (3) Named after director Sam Wood . Her favorite actress was Vivien Leigh and her favorite singer was Bob Dylan .

She suffered from a deep fear of drowning after having barely survived an accident when she was a little girl, during the filming of The Green Promise (1949). Her fear was so great that Elia Kazan had to lie - promising a double - and trick her into doing the scenes at the water reservoir in Splendor in the Grass (1961). Following her untimely death, she was interred at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California. On her grave, marked Natalie Wood Wagner: Beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother & friend "more than love". Was commonly listed as 5' 3" wearing heels in movie magazines, though her actual height was 5' 0". The Harvard Lampoon often singled her out for derision. On Saturday, April 23, 1966, she surprised the Lampoon's staff when she became the first performer they voted the year's worst to show up and accept her citation. Reportedly turned down Warren Beatty 's offer to play opposite him in Bonnie and Clyde (1967) because she did not want to be separated from her analyst while the film was on location in the Midwest.

Splendour, the name of the yacht Wood was on the night she died, was named after her movie Splendor in the Grass (1961). An accident on a movie set (she fell into a river and almost drowned) when she was 9 years old left her with a permanently weakened left wrist and a slight bone protrusion, which, for the rest of her life, she hid with large bracelets. Regardless of the movie role, or anytime that she was out in public, she always wore a large bracelet on the left wrist. The rubber dinghy "Prince Valiant" she had allegedly been trying to board after falling from husband Robert Wagner 's yacht that fateful Thanksgiving weekend in 1981, was named after Wagner's movie Prince Valiant (1954), a film the actor considered among his worst. Had planned to produce as well as star in I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977), but the leading role of Deborah Blake went to Kathleen Quinlan by the time the film was made. Attended ballet classes as a child with Jill St. John and Stefanie Powers . All three women would go on to have long-term relationships with Robert Wagner .

Pallbearers at her funeral were Rock Hudson , Frank Sinatra , Laurence Olivier , Elia Kazan , Gregory Peck , David Niven and Fred Astaire . Gave birth to her first child at age 32, a daughter Natasha Gregson Wagner on September 29, 1970. Child's father is her second husband, Richard Gregson . Gave birth to her second child at age 35, a daughter Courtney Wagner on March 9, 1974. Child's father is her third husband, Robert Wagner . Her death was kismet, as she always cited a fear of water. Her and co-star Richard Beymer 's singing voices were both dubbed in West Side Story (1961). The woman who dubbed Natalie, Marni Nixon , also dubbed Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady (1964) and Deborah Kerr in The King and I (1956). It was later reported that Wood was disappointed that her singing voice was not use in the movie. Her paternal grandparents were Stephan Zakharenko and Eudoxie Sauchenko, and her maternal grandparents were Stepan Ilich Zudilov and Maria Andreevna Kuleva.

She was of Russian and Ukrainian ancestry. Her father was an architect and her mother was a ballerina. She could do a proper plié before she could barely walk. Her mother, Maria, claimed that the family was closely related to the Romanov dynasty. Spoke Russian and English. Though some people cite her mother as being French, her mother is Russian. The source of this misconception comes from the studio that Natalie worked at when she was a child -- people noticed her mother's accent and when asked if she was French, Maria replied: "Oh yes", a white lie that would contribute to this confusion. Younger sister Lana Wood made a ABC TV special on Natalie's life, The Mystery of Natalie Wood (2004). Was offered a chance to play Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby (1974) under the condition that she screen test for the role. She refused to do the screen test and Mia Farrow was given the part. Turned down Ali MacGraw 's breakthrough role in Goodbye, Columbus (1969). She was cast as Maggie in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1976) quite unexpectedly, without campaigning for the role.

Wood explained that when Laurence Olivier would come to Hollywood, she would often be seated with him at the table at formal sit-down dinners. When Olivier decided to make a version of the Tennessee Williams play, he thought of casting Wood, his dinner companion, and her husband, Robert Wagner , in the husband-wife roles of Brick and Maggie. Naturally, they accepted. Wood knew screenwriter Gavin Lambert as both were intimates of director Randy Suhr . In the early '60s, he wrote a novel about an adolescent Hollywood starlet in the 1930s titled Inside Daisy Clover (1965). After reading the book, Wood telephoned Lambert and said, "I'd kill for that part.". He assured her she was his first choice for the movie, for which he was writing the screenplay. She got the part and Ruth Gordon got her first Oscar nomination as an actress for portraying Daisy's mother. Both she and her sister Lana Wood have played the love interest of Richard Beymer in two separate films: she as Maria opposite Richard's Tony in West Side Story (1961), and Lana as Karen opposite Richard's Dean in Scream Free! (1969) (aka Free Grass).

She was the inspiration of High School Musical (2006) star Vanessa Hudgens . Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives." Volume One, 1981-1985, pages 889-890. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998. People magazine (USA) named her one of "The 25 Most Intriguing People of 1976" for the January 3, 1977 issue. Entertainment Weekly placed her on the "100 greatest stars of all time" list, at #70. Voted one of the top sex stars of the 1970s in Playboy magazine. Called "The Most Beautiful Teenager in the World" by Life magazine in 1956. Once interviewed Arnold Schwarzenegger , before his career took off, for the magazine "Hollywood Reporter" in 1979, two years before her her death. The article was entitled "The Body meets the Face". Her death was listed at number 24 on E! Television's 101 Most Shocking Moments in Entertainment.

Don Henley wrote the song "Dirty Laundry" to express his outrage at the tabloid press for their treatment of her after her death. Met Robert Redford while attending Van Nuys High School. Redford was later her leading man in Inside Daisy Clover (1965) and This Property Is Condemned (1966). There could have been two more collaborations, had Wood starred in Barefoot in the Park (1967) and The Great Gatsby (1974), both of which she turned down. "Natalie's Song" by David Pack, was written about Natalie Wood. "Eyes Like Natalie Wood" by Kathy Fleischmann, was written about her. Former stepmother of Katie Wagner . Started smoking at age 16. Gypsy (1962) co-star Morgan Brittany said of Wood, "I never saw her without a cigarette, ever.". Godmother of her daughter Natasha Gregson Wagner was Ruth Gordon , who played Natalie's mother in the film Inside Daisy Clover (1965). Rehearsals for her stage debut in "Anastasia" were to begin in December 1981. Her niece was born in August 1974.

She was the subject of the 2001 biography "Natasha" by former attorney Suzanne Finstad . Finstad interviewed nearly 400 people in researching Wood and had the cooperation of her sister, who narrated the audio version. The book is controversial and makes shocking claims regarding the actress's early sex life, complex relationship with Robert Wagner , level of substance abuse and mysterious death. Had an affair with 43-year-old director Nicholas Ray when she was 16 years old. According to a multitude of publications, other way-older (by at least two decades) men romantically linked to the underage Wood included Raymond Burr , John Ireland and Frank Sinatra . Was the youngest nominee in her category each of the three times she was nominated for an Oscar, the first being when she was 17 and the last when she was 25. Has multiple connections with the James Bond franchise. Her sister, Lana Wood , briefly appeared in Diamonds Are Forever (1971), in which Jill St. John (who is married to Wood's widower, Robert Wagner ) was the lead actress.

Wood co-starred in Meteor (1979) with Sean Connery , who played the James Bond character in seven films, and in Brainstorm (1983), she co-starred with Christopher Walken , who was a Bond villain in A View to a Kill (1985). She also co-starred in From Here to Eternity (1979) with Kim Basinger , who was a Bond girl in Never Say Never Again (1983) opposite Connery. Her widower, Robert Wagner, played Number Two in the Austin Powers trilogy which parodies the early Bond films. Was Maureen O'Hara 's daughter in two movies, one being the classic Miracle on 34th Street (1947). Natalie referred to Maureen as Mama Maureen till her death in 1981. Columbia Pictures secured the film rights for the Henry De Vere Stacpoole novel "The Blue Lagoon" in the mid-1950s, with Natalie in the role of Emmeline Lestrange.

However, the project was shelved for many years and was not filmed until the late 1970s and the film The Blue Lagoon (1980) ultimately starred Brooke Shields . Colombia bought it for the American remake of Blue Lagoon 1949 starring Jean Simmons. The first edition of the movie was made by an English company in 1923, just after the book was written. Had she lived, she would have become a first-time grandmother on 30 May 2012 when her elder daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner , gave birth to a girl named Clover Clementyne Watson. Wood's death certificate was modified to show some of the uncertainties surrounding the actress' death. The document was amended in August 2012 and changed from accidental drowning to "drowning and other undetermined factors", according to a copy of the certificate obtained August 21, 2012 by The Associated Press. Her longtime friend, actress Hope Lange , delivered a eulogy at her funeral. She was posthumously awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on February 1, 1986.

She was posthumously awarded a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars on December 7, 2007. In 1990, Dennis Hopper told a story on Late Night with David Letterman (1982) of a time when 16-year-old Natalie wanted to have an orgy in a bathtub full of champagne. Along with another young girl and actor Nick Adams , she and Hopper went up to a cabin in the mountains and filled up the tub with champagne. Natalie wanted to be the first one in. She sat down in the tub and started screaming hysterically because her private parts had been stung. She had to be rushed to the emergency room and the orgy never happened. Admired and wanted to emulate Bette Davis , Vivien Leigh and Elizabeth Taylor . Leigh was her favorite actress. Irving Pichel 's partners, William Goetz and Leo Spitz, changed her last name to Wood in honor of director Sam Wood . Her first name Natalie was an Americanization of her Russian name.

Co-star and longtime friend Robert Hyatt said of her: "Natalie would get up in the morning and take a Dexie [Dexadryne], then she would have a bowl of chicken noodle soup and white wine for breakfast". Pulled out of The Mirror Crack'd (1980) due to creative differences. She was cast as the Russian astrophysicist Dr. Tatiana Donskaya in Meteor (1979) because she spoke fluent Russian. In 2015, a retired FBI agent named Donald Wilson claimed he had a four-year affair with Wood starting in 1973. According to Wilson, they met in Idaho when Wood was pregnant and "taking a break" from husband Robert Wagner. Wilson said they kept their romance a secret because the disclosure would harm both Wood's acting career and his FBI work; the two mutually agreed to stop seeing each other in 1977. Her 38-year-old daughter Courtney Wagner was arrested in 2012 for cocaine and heroin possession when police searched her Malibu home after receiving a report of gunshots fired at the house.

According to Natalie's sister Lana Wood , Courtney has attempted suicide in the past and for a time was receiving psychiatric care. "My sister would be devastated if she knew how Courtney has ruined her life," said Lana. Personal Quotes (9) You get tough in this business, until you get big enough to hire people to get tough for you. Then you can sit back and be a lady. [in 1961] In so many ways I think it's a bore to be sorry you were a child actor - so many people feel sorry for you automatically. At the time, I wasn't aware of the things I missed, so why should I think of them in retrospect? Everybody misses something or other. I felt a little funny when we were going to do the bed scene, all four of us, in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969). I'm open to suggestions, I'm no prude, but four is a crowd in my book. Fortunately, Dyan Cannon was there. The thought of another woman being in there in the bed helped get me through it. It's not like it sounds. It's just that I don't think I could have done it if it had been me and three men.

[on being a child actor] I spent practically all my time in the company of adults. I was very withdrawn, very shy, I did what I was told and I tried not to disappoint anybody. I knew I had a duty to perform, and I was trained to follow orders. [shortly before her death] You know what I want? I want yesterday. [on dating Elvis Presley when she was 18] Elvis was so square, we'd go... for hot fudge sundaes. He didn't drink, he didn't swear, he didn't even smoke. It was like having the date that I never had in high school. [in 1980] I've always been terrified, still am, of water -- dark water, sea water, or, you know, river water. [on Marilyn Monroe ] When you look at Marilyn on the screen, you don't want anything bad to happen to her. You really care that she should be all right... happy. [on remarrying Robert Wagner ] Sometimes it's better to have the devil you know than the devil you don't. Salary (10) Hollywood's Leading Ladies Hollywood's Leading Ladies NEW!

- Check out some of Hollywood's notable actresses who have graced the big screen, television screen, and more... Pages Barbara Hershey Star of Hannah and Her Sisters, Beaches, and Black Swan Barbara Lynn Herzstein was born February 5, 1948 in Hollywood, California. She has been acting for many years but is most well know for her roles in the 1980s. Early in her career during the 1960s, Barbara starred as Kathy Monroe in the television series The Monroes. Later in her career she was well known for starring in Hannah and Her Sisters as well as the film Beaches. She also starred as Dr. Francesca Alberghetti in the television series Chicago Hope. More recently she appeared in Black Swan as Erica Sayers. Barbara Hershey Barbara got her acting start in 1965 appearing in an episode of the TV series Gidget starring Sally Field, Don Porter and Lynette Winter. She appeared in two more episodes the following year as well as two episodes of the television show The Farmer's Daughter starring Inger co-starring Inger Stevens, William Windom and Cathleen Nesbitt. She starred in two episodes that year.

Later in 1966, Hershey landed her first television series role as Kathy Monroe in the show The Monroes. She co-starred with Michael Anderson Jr. (Clayt Monroe), Keith Schultz (Jefferson Monroe), Kevin Schultz (Fennimore Monroe), and Tammy Locke (Amy Monroe). The series also starred Liam Sullivan (Major Mapoy), Ron Soble (Dirty Jim), Ben Johnson (Sleeve), and James Westmoreland (Ruel Jaxon). Barbara played the role of Kathy Monroe for two years until the show ended.

Cast of The Monroes - L to R: Kevin Schultz, Keith Schultz, Ron Sable (holding cougar cub), Michael Anderson Jr, Barabara Hershey and Tammy Locke After The Monroes, Hershey appeared in the TV show Daniel Boone starring Fess Parker, Patricia Blair, Darby Hinton, Ed Ames, and Dal McKennon (1967); Run for Your Life starring Ben Gazzara (1968); The Invaders starring Roy Thinnes, Dick Wesson, William Woodson, and Kent Smith (1968); and The High Chaparral starring Leif Erickson, Cameron Mitchell, Linda Cristal, Henry Darrow, and Mark Slade (1968). In 1968, Hershey made her film debut in With Six You Get Eggroll. She co-starred with Doris Day, Brian Keith, Alice Ghostley, George Carlin, Pat Carroll, Jamie Farr , Elaine Devry, William Christopher, John Findl, and Herb Voland. This was followed the next year with the film Heaven with a Gun.

She co-starred with Glenn Ford, Carolyn Jones, David Carradine, John Anderson, Noah Beery Jr., Barbara Babcock, J.D. Cannon, and Harry Townes. The cast of With Six You Get Eggroll 1968 This launched Hershey's career as film actress as she went on to star in Last Summer with Richard Thomas, Catherine Burns, Bruce Davison, and Ernesto Gonzalez (1969); The Liberation of L.B. Jones co-starring Lee J. Cobb, Anthony Zerbe, Lee Majors , Lola Falana, Roscoe Lee Browne, Yaphet Kotto, Chill Wills, and Arch Johnson (1970); The Baby Maker co-starring Collin Wilcox Paxton, Scott Glenn, Sam Groom, Jeannie Berlin, Paul Linke, and Bobby Pickett (1970); The Pursuit of Happiness co-starring Michael Sarrazin, Arthur Hill, E.G.

Marshall, Ruth White, Robert Klein, Peter White, Sada Thompson, William Devane, Ralph Waite, and Barnard Hughes (1971); Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues co-starring Howard Gardner, John Lithgow, Robert F. Lyons, Nancy Belle Fuller, Ellen Barber, Paul Williams, and Charles Durning (1972); Boxcar Bertha co-starring David Carradine, John Carradine, Barry Primus, Bernie Casey, Ann Morell, and Victor Argo (1972). David Carradine and Barbara Hershey in Boxcar Bertha 1972 In 1973, Hershey changed her last name to Seagull and her success dwindled.

Under this name she starred in shows and movies such as Love Comes Quietly co-starring Sandy van der Linden, Ralph Meeker, Kitty Janssen, and Ward de Ravet (1973); the show Love Story starring Harry Basch, Tony Becker, Don Murray, Louise Lasser, and Joan Tompkins (1973); The Crazy World of Julius Vrooder co-starring Timothy Bottoms, George Marshall, Dena Dietrich, Richard Dysart, Albert Salmi, and Lawrence Pressman (1974); Kung Fu starring David Carradine, Radames Pera and Keye Luke (1975); You and Me co-starring David Carradine, Chipper Chadbourne, Bobbie Shaw Chance, Keith Carradine, Robert Carradine, Gary Busey, and Dennis Fimple (1975); and Diamonds co-starring Robert Shaw, Richard Roundtree, Joseph Shiloach, and Shelley Winters (1975).

Barbara Hershey in Kung Fu 1975 In 1976, Barbara changed her stage name back to Hershey and went on to star in The Last Hard Men co-starring Charlton Heston, James Coburn, Larry Wilcox, Michael Parks, Jorge Rivero, and Morgan Paull (1976); A Dirty Knight's Work co-starring John Mills, Donald Pleasence, Margaret Leighton, Peter Cushing, David Birney, Bernard Hill, and Brian Glover (1976); Flood!

co-starring Robert Culp, Martin Milner, Roddy McDowall, Richard Basehart, Carol Lynley, and Leif Garrett (1976); In the Glitter Palace co-starring Chad Everett, Ron Masak, Howard Duff, Diana Scarwid, Anthony Zerbe, and Ron Rifkin (1977); Just a Little Inconvenience co-starring Lee Majors , James Stacy, Jim Davis , Lane Bradbury, Bob Hastings, Charles Cioffi, and John Furey (1977); Sunshine Christmas co-starring Cliff De Young, Meg Foster, Corey Fischer, Elizabeth Cheshire, Bill Mumy, Pat Hingle, and Eileen Heckart (1977); and A Man Called Intrepid co-starring David Niven, Michael York, Nigel Stock, Paul Harding, Renée Asherson, and Peter Gilmore (1979).

Barbara Hershey in A Man Called Intrepid 1979 Hershey began the 80s starring in From Here to Eternity co-starring Kim Basinger, William Devane and Roy Thinnes (1980); Angel on My Shoulder co-starring Peter Strauss, Richard Kiley, Seymour Cassel, Janis Paige, and Billy Jayne (1980); The Stunt Man co-starring Peter O'Toole, Steve Railsback, Sharon Farrell, Alex Rocco, John Garwood, and Allen Garfield (1980); Take This Job and Shove It co-starring Robert Hays, Art Carney, David Keith, Eddie Albert, Martin Mull, Tim Thomerson, Art Carney, and Penelope Milford (1981); Twilight Theater co-starring Bob Denver, Steve Martin, Leslie Nielsen, Rick Moranis, Mr.

T, Pam Dawber , Rosemary Clooney, Shelley Duvall, and Harry Anderson (1982); The Entity co-starring Ron Silver, David Labiosa, Margaret Blye, Allan Rich, Alex Rocco, George Coe, Jacqueline Brookes, Michael Alldredge, and Richard Brestoff (1982); Americana co-starring David Carradine, Michael Greene, John Blyth Barrymore, Bruce Carradine, Arnold Herzstein, Dan Haggerty , and David Kern (1983); The Right Stuff co-starring Sam Shepard, Scott Glenn, Fred Ward, Ed Harris, Dennis Quaid, Veronica Cartwright, Pamela Reed, Kim Stanley, Lance Henriksen, Mary Jo Deschanel, and Donald Moffat (1983); The Natural co-starring Robert Redford, Robert Duvall, Wilford Brimley, Glenn Close, Joe Don Baker, Richard Farnsworth, and Alan Fudge (1984); My Wicked, Wicked Ways: The Legend of Errol Flynn co-starring Duncan Regehr, Adrian Aron, William Beckley, James Bacon, Denise Crosby, and George Coe (1985

); and Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Wake Me When I'm Dead co-starring Brian Bedford, George Innes, Reid Shelton, Buck Henry, and Carolyn Seymour (1985).

Barbara Hershey in The Natural 1984 Barbara led of the second half of the 80s starring in Hannah and Her Sisters co-starring Mia Farrow, Carrie Fisher , Dianne Wiest, Woody Allen, Michael Caine, Maureen O'Sullivan, Max von Sydow, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Julie Kavner, and Lloyd Nolan (1986); Hoosiers co-starring Gene Hackman, Dennis Hopper, Chelcie Ross, Sheb Wooley, Robert Swan, Gloria Dorson, Fern Persons, and Michael Sassone (1986); Passion Flower co-starring Bruce Boxleitner, Nicol Williamson, Dick O'Neill, and John Waters (1987); Tin Men co-starring Richard Dreyfuss, Danny DeVito, Seymour Cassel, J.T.

Walsh, Bruno Kirby, John Mahoney, Jackie Gayle, Richard Portnow, Alan Blumenfeld, and Stanley Brock (1987); Shy People co-starring Jill Clayburgh, Martha Plimpton, Don Swayze, Mare Winningham, Merritt Butrick, John Philbin, and Pruitt Taylor Vince (1987); A World Apart co-starring David Suchet, Jodhi May, Jeroen Krabbé, Tim Roth, Kate Fitzpatrick, Nadine Chalmers, Maria Pilar, and Phyllis Naidoo (1988); The Last Temptation of Christ co-starring William Dafoe, Harvey Keitel, Steve Shill, Verna Bloom, Paul Greco, Gary Basaraba, Roberts Blossom, and John Lurie (1988); and Beaches co-starring Bette Midler, John Heard, Lainie Kazan, John Heard, Grace Johnston, Spalding Gray, James Read, and Mayim Bialik (1988).

Barbara Hershey and William Dafoe in The Last Temptation of Christ 1988 Natalie Wood star of Rebel Without A Cause, West Side Story, Gypsy, and Miracle on 34th St Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko was born July 20, 1938 in San Francisco, California. Her parents were Russian immigrants. When Natalia began acting, the studio she worked for changed her name to Natalie Wood. Her younger sister Svetlana also an actress, used the stage name Wood and was known as Lana Wood. Natalie is best known for her role as little Susan Walker in Miracle on 34th Street. She also starred in Rebel Without A Cause with James Dean, West Side Story, and played Gypsy Rose Lee in the film Gypsy. Natalie was married to actor Robert Wagner with whom she co-starred in several films. Natalie Wood played the young Susan Walker who didn't believe in Santa Clause in Miracle on 34th Street 1947 Natalie landed her first minor role in the 1943 film The Moon Is Down starring Cedric Hardwicke, Henry Travers, Peter van Eyck, Lee J.

Cobb, and Dorris Bowdon. This was quickly followed by another minor role in Happy Land starring Don Ameche, Ann Rutherford, Frances Dee, Harry Carey, Harry Morgan , Richard Crane, and Cara Williams. In 1946, Wood landed her first credited film role in Tomorrow Is Forever co-starring Claudette Colbert, Orson Welles, George Brent, Richard Long, and Lucile Watson. That same year she also starred in The Bride Wore Boots with Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Cummings, Diana Lynn, Peggy Wood, Willie Best, Patric Knowles, and Robert Benchley. It was in 1947 that little Natatlie Wood landed the starring role as Susan Walker, the little girl who didn't believe in Santa Clause in the Holiday film Miracle on 34th Street. She co-starred with Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara, John Payne and Gene Lockhart. The film is still a popular choice of movie lovers at Christmas time to this day. That year, Natalie also starred in The Ghost and Mrs. Muir with Gene Tierney, Rex Harrison, George Sanders, Edna Best, Robert Coote, and Anna Lee.

Natalie Wood (Susan Walker) and Edmund Gwenn (Santa Clause) in Miracle on 34th Street 1947 Wood would go on to star in Driftwood co-starring Ruth Warrick, Walter Brennan, Charlotte Greenwood, Dean Jagger, Margaret Hamilton, and Jerome Cowan (1947); Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! co-starring June Haver, Anne Revere, Lon McCallister, Walter Brennan, Robert Karnes, Tom Tully, and Henry Hull (1948); Chicken Every Sunday co-starring Dan Dailey, Celeste Holm, Alan Young, Colleen Townsend, and William Frawley (1949); The Green Promise co-starring Marguerite Chapman, Walter Brennan, Robert Paige, Connie Marshall, Ted Donaldson, and Robert Ellis (1949); and Father Was a Fullback co-starring Fred MacMurray, Maureen O'Hara, Betty Lynn, Thelma Ritter, Jim Backus, Rudy Vallee, and Buddy Martin (1949).

Natalie Wood circa 1950 Natalie started off the 1950s starring in No Sad Songs for Me co-starring Margaret Sullavan, John McIntire, Wendell Corey, Ann Doran, and Viveca Lindfors (1950); Our Very Own co-starring Ann Blyth, Farley Granger, Jane Wyatt, Joan Evans, Donald Cook, Martin Milner, and Ann Dvorak (1950); Never a Dull Moment co-starring Irene Dunne, Fred MacMurray, Andy Devine, William Demarest, Ann Doran, Gigi Perreau, and Jack Kirkwood (1950); and The Jackpot co-starring James Stewart, Barbara Hale, Patricia Medina, James Gleason, Alan Mowbray, and Fred Clark (1950).

In 1951, Natalie starred in Dear Brat with Mona Freeman, Billy De Wolfe, Mary Philips, Edward Arnold, and Lyle Bettger; The Blue Veil co-starring Jane Wyman, Charles Laughton, Agnes Moorehead, Joan Blondell, Richard Carlson, Alan Napier, and Vivian Vance; The Rose Bowl Story co-starring Marshall Thompson, Vera Miles, Richard Rober, Jim Backus, Ann Doran, and Keith Larsen; Just for You co-starring Bing Crosby, Jane Wyman, Robert Arthur, Ethel Barrymore, and Cora Witherspoon; and The Star co-starring Bette Davis, Sterling Hayden, Minor Watson, and Warner Anderson. It was in 1953 that Natalie landed her first recurring role in a series, although it was only a few episodes of The Pride of the Family. She played the role of Ann Morrison and co-starred with Larry J. Blake, Paul Hartman, Fay Wray, Joey D. Vieira, and Robert Hyatt. She appeared in six episodes of the show over two years until it ended in 1954.

Cast of the television show The Pride of the Family During her run on The Pride of the Family, she played the recurring role of June on the television series Mayor of the Town. She co-starred with Kathleen Freeman (Marilly), Thomas Mitchell (Mayor Thomas Russell), Jean Byron (Minnie), David Saber (Butch), and Tudor Owen (Joe Ainsley). She appeared in four episodes of the show in 1954. After The Pride of the Family and Mayor of the Town, Natalie appeared in mostly television shows for a couple of years with a couple of films mixed in between. Appearances such as The Public Defender starring Reed Hadley, Robert Bice, Gladys Holland, James Flavin, and Steven Geray (1954); Studio 57 starring Morris Ankrum, Eleanor Audley, Jean Byron, Pauline Moore, and Gay Lynn (1954); The Silver Chalice co-starring Virginia Mayo, Pier Angeli, Lorne Greene, Jack Palance, Paul Newman, E.G. Marshall, Joseph Wiseman, and Walter Hampden (1954); G.E.

True Theater: I'm a Fool with Eddie Albert, James Dean, and Fiona Hale (1954); The Ford Television Theatre: Too Old for Dolls co-starring Joyce Coates, Laraine Day, Tommy Cook, and Franchot Tone (1955); and One Desire co-starring Anne Baxter, Rock Hudson, William Hopper, Julie Adams, and Carl Benton Reid (1955). 1000+ images about Natalie Wood on Pinterest | John payne, 1960s and Single girls Pinterest • The world’s catalog of ideas Natalie Wood Natalie Wood | All The Tropes Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia All The Tropes Wiki Russian American actress, (1938-1981) most famous for appearing in Rebel Without a Cause and West Side Story , marrying Robert Wagner twice, and sadly, for drowning in mysterious circumstances aged 43. First appeared on screen aged four and had a career spanning five decades from Miracle On 34th Street in 1947, to the posthumously released scifi Brainstorm in 1983.

She was nominated for three Academy Awards by the age of 25; to this day, she's the youngest actress with three nominations. Notable Films: Tropes associated with her include: Adorkable : Trying to disguise her voice in this appearance on What's My Line? The Cast Showoff : Could speak Russian, as utilised in The Great Race. Dawson Casting : Averted in Rebel. She was a teenager at the time. Played straight in Splendor in the Grass. Important Haircut : To the character in Splendor. Non-Singing Voice : Her singing was dubbed by Marni Nixon in West Side Story, and by Jackie Ward in The Great Race and Inside Daisy Clover. In Gypsy, however, she did her own singing. One Head Taller : Was 5'0 and usually dwarfed by the leading man. Photographic Memory : She could easily memorize and deliver her lines, earning her the nickname, "One Take Natalie." Sometimes, she also had to help co-stars with their lines. Stage Names : She was born as Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko. Her name was later changed to Gurdin, and when she started to appear in movies, Wood.

Star-Making Role : In Rebel Without a Cause. And the death of James Dean shortly after left her as the sole focus of much of the contemporary fandom. What Might Have Been : Opted to stay away from large film roles during the 1970s to raise a family. Brainstorm was supposed to be a 'comeback' role. Also the stress of finishing the film after her death pushed director Douglas Trumbull away from moviemaking. Child Star Natalie Wood - American Profile Home On the Road Child Star Natalie Wood Child Star Natalie Wood Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window) San Francisco-born Natalie Wood (1938-1981) began appearing in movies as a child and won acclaim for her role in Miracle on 34th Street (1947). She later played leading roles in Rebel Without a Cause (1955), Splendor in the Grass (1961), West Side Story (1961), Love with the Proper Stranger (1963), Inside Daisy Clover (1966) and Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969). She drowned in a boating accident near Santa Catalina Island.

Actress Natalie Wood drowns - Nov 29, 1981 - HISTORY.com Actress Natalie Wood drowns Publisher A+E Networks On this day in 1981, the actress Natalie Wood, who starred in such movies as Rebel Without a Cause and West Side Story, drowns in a boating accident near California’s Catalina Island. She was 43 years old. Born Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko on July 20, 1938, in San Francisco, California, Wood began her acting career as a child. She gained acclaim for her role as Susan Walker, the little girl who doubts the existence of Santa Claus in Miracle on 34th Street (1947). As a teenager, Wood went on to play James Dean’s girlfriend in Rebel Without a Cause (1955), for which she received a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination. She also earned Best Actress Academy Award nominations for her performances in Splendor in the Grass (1961) with Warren Beatty and Love with the Proper Stranger (1963) with Steve McQueen.

Wood’s film credits also include West Side Story (1961), winner of 10 Oscars, in which she played the lead role of Maria; Gypsy (1962), which was based on the hit Broadway musical of the same name and co-starred Rosalind Russell and Karl Malden; The Great Race (1965), with Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis; Inside Daisy Clover (1966), with Christopher Plummer and Robert Redford; and Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969) with Robert Culp, Elliott Gould and Dyan Cannon. Wood was twice married to the actor Robert Wagner (Hart to Hart, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery), from 1957 to 1962 and from 1974 to the time of her death. On the night of November 29, 1981, the dark-haired beauty was with her husband on their yacht “The Splendor,” which was moored off Santa Catalina, near Los Angeles. Also on the yacht was the actor Christopher Walken, who at the time was making the movie Brainstorm with Wood.

Neither Wagner nor Walken saw what happened to Wood that night, but it was believed she somehow slipped overboard while untying a dinghy attached to the boat. Her body was found in the early hours of the following morning. Brainstorm, Wood’s final film, was released in theaters in 1983. Related Videos Natalie Wood - IMDb IMDb Actress | Soundtrack | Music Department Natalie Wood was born on July 20, 1938, in San Francisco, California, as Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko. Her parents, Maria Stepanovna (Zudilova) and Nikolai Stepanovich Zakharenko, were Russian-born émigrés, of Ukrainian and Russian descent, who spoke barely comprehensible English; they changed the family name to Gurdin after becoming US citizens....

See full bio » Born: a list of 32 people created 23 Jan 2011 a list of 40 people created 04 Dec 2011 a list of 25 people created 29 May 2014 a list of 22 people created 23 Jan 2015 a list of 38 people created 1 month ago Do you have a demo reel? Add it to your IMDbPage How much of Natalie Wood's work have you seen? User Polls Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 8 wins & 27 nominations. See more awards » Known For The Searchers Debbie Edwards - Age 15 (1956) 1979 Hart to Hart (TV Series) Movie Star 1979 The Cracker Factory (TV Movie) Cassie Barrett Girl in the Bubble Bath / Cruise Ship Passenger - The Cage (1978) ...

Girl in the Bubble Bath 1973 The Affair (TV Movie) Courtney Patterson 1954-1957 Studio 57 (TV Series) Sheila Mason 1955-1956 Kings Row (TV Series) Renee Gyllinson 1955 Four Star Playhouse (TV Series) Louise 1954 Public Defender (TV Series) Renee Marchand 1954 The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse (TV Series) Monica 2010/I White Snow (writer: "Number Ones") 1973 The Affair (TV Movie) (performer: "I Can't See You Anymore") 1966 Penelope (performer: "The Sun Is Gray") 1965 Inside Daisy Clover (performer: "You're Gonna Hear from Me", "The Circus Is a Wacky World" - uncredited) 1965 The Great Race (performer: "The Sweetheart Tree") 1962 Gypsy (performer: "Little Lamb" (1959), "If Momma Was Married" (1959), "Let Me Entertain You" (

1959), "Together, Wherever We Go" (1959) - uncredited) 1961 West Side Story (performer: "Maria" (1957) (1957), "Tonight" (1957), "I Feel Pretty" (1957), "One Hand, One Heart" (1957), "Quintet" (1957), "Somewhere" (1957), "A Boy Like That/I Have a Love" (1957), "Somewhere" (reprise) (1957) - uncredited) - Pat Suzuki and Natalie Wood (1958) ...

(performer: "Them There Eyes" - uncredited) Hide 1973 The Affair (TV Movie) (musician: title song) Hide 1969 Downhill Racer (production assistant - uncredited) Hide 1989 Dieter & Andreas (Short) (grateful acknowledgment) 1983 Brainstorm (dedicatee - as Natalie) Hide 1978-1980 Good Morning America (TV Series) Herself - Guest 1979 The 51st Annual Academy Awards (TV Special documentary) Herself - Co-Presenter: Best Foreign Language Film 1974 ABC Late Night (TV Series) Herself 1974 Cinema (TV Series documentary) Herself 1974 James Dean Remembered (TV Special documentary) Herself 1973 V.I.P.-Schaukel (TV Series documentary) Herself - Guest 1966 Penelope's Fashion Show (Documentary short) Herself (uncredited) 1966 What's My Line?

(TV Series) Herself - Mystery Guest 1957 The 29th Annual Academy Awards (TV Special documentary) Herself - Audience Member 1956 The Linkletter Show (TV Series) Herself 1956 Lux Video Theatre (TV Series) Herself - Intermission Guest Herself - Nominee: Best Actress in a Supporting Role Hide 2015 Warren Beatty - Mister Hollywood (TV Movie documentary) Herself 2005-2012 American Masters (TV Series documentary) Herself / Judy 2012 Banda sonora (TV Series) Maria 2011 48 Hours (TV Series documentary) Herself 2006 Private Screenings (TV Series) Herself 2003 Christmas from Hollywood (Video documentary) Herself 2000-2003 Biography (TV Series documentary) Herself / Judy 2003 Bob Hope at 100 (TV Movie documentary) Herself (uncredited) 2000 The Final Day (TV Mini-Series documentary) Herself 1996 Rediscovering a Rebel (TV Short documentary) Herself (uncredited) 1

995 Barbra: The Concert (TV Special documentary) Herself - at a Nightclub (uncredited) 1994 100 Years at the Movies (TV Short documentary) Herself 1990 Rock Hudson (TV Movie) Herself (uncredited) 1963 Hollywood: The Great Stars (TV Movie documentary) Herself (uncredited) Personal Details Other Works: (12/22/47) Radio: Appeared (as "Susan Walker") in a "Lux Radio Theater" broadcast of "Miracle on 34th Street".

Publicity Listings: 3 Biographical Movies | 4 Print Biographies | 2 Portrayals | 2 Interviews | 10 Articles | 15 Pictorials | 19 Magazine Cover Photos | See more » Alternate Names: Did You Know? Personal Quote: [on dating Elvis Presley when she was 18] Elvis was so square, we'd go... for hot fudge sundaes. He didn't drink, he didn't swear, he didn't even smoke. It was like having the date that I never had in high school. See more » Trivia: Her paternal grandparents were Stephan Zakharenko and Eudoxie Sauchenko, and her maternal grandparents were Stepan Ilich Zudilov and Maria Andreevna Kuleva. She was of Russian and Ukrainian ancestry. Her father was an architect and her mother was a ballerina. She could do a proper plié before she could barely walk.

See more » Trademark: Small petite frame See more » Nickname: Russian-American Heritage Museum: Natalie Wood movie and TV actress July 20, 1938 - November 29, 1981 Natalie Wood was an American film and television actress best known for her screen roles in such classics as Miracle on 34th Street, Splendor in the Grass, Rebel Without a Cause, and West Side Story, as well as for becoming an Academy Award nominee before she was 25. Natalie Wood – burning brightly but soon extinguished star Natalie Wood was born in San Francisco, to the family of Russian immigrants Nikolai and Maria Zakharenko, who came to America after the Russian Civil War from Vladivostok via Kharbin (China) and Montreal (Canada). Her mother dreamed of becoming an actress and transferred those ambitions to Natalie. She would take her daughter to every movie she could, and watching Hollywood child stars on the screen was Natalie's only professional training. Later Natalie would tell about that period in her life: "My mother used to tell me that the cameraman who pointed his lens out at the audience at the end of the Paramount newsreel was taking my picture.

I'd pose and smile like he was going to make me famous or something. I believed everything my mother told me..." The family moved to Santa Rosa, California, where Wood, who was only 7 years old, was noticed during a film shoot in the downtown area and offered the role of a German orphan opposite Orson Welles and Claudette Colbert in Tomorrow Is Forever (1946). Film executives changed her last name to Wood at that time. The girl earned such high praise from colleagues and producers ("She was so good it was terrifying" – Orson Welles) and such admiration from the viewers, that she was almost immediately signed up for another role, destined to become a classic: the Miracle on 34th Street (1947)! She became one of the top child stars in Hollywood, and Macy's invited her to appear in the store's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. According to local laws, she was obligated to spend at least three hours daily in classes, so the whole film crew would sit around on the set waiting for Natalie to finish her studies and arrive to start filming.

Natalie's star status was further cemented by her role in the 1953-1954 television sitcom The Pride of the Family, then in Rebel Without a Cause (1955) with James Dean (for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress), and then in The Searchers (1956), opposite John Wayne. Interestingly, in The Searchers she played together with her younger sister Svetlana Zacharenko (stage name Lana Wood), who would go on to become an actress in her own right, many years later playing a Bond girl. Having gained experience, Natalie went on to play in Splendor in the Grass (1961) opposite Warren Beatty, which earned her another nomination for the Academy Awards, as well as Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards, plus in Love with the Proper Stranger (1963), with her third Academy Award nomination. In late 60s, after a string of difficult roles, Wood suffered emotionally, sought professional therapy, and later went on a three-year hiatus.

Then she played Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969) and went into semi-retirement due to the birth of her first daughter in 1970 and her second daughter in 1974. Wood's personal life is worthy of a romance or a drama. She was twice married to Robert Wagner, her childhood dream and father of both of her children. The relationship was a stormy one, which ended in her tragic death in 1981 under very suspicious circumstances. She was found drowned during a weekend boat trip to Santa Catalina Island, California. The body showed signs of a struggle, and high levels of alcohol and medication was found in her blood. Interviewed by the police, Wagner admitted he had had a fight with his wife right before her drowning. An inquiry was carried out, with the final verdict being accidental death by drowning and hypothermia. "Movie Idols" – John Wrathall; Mick Molloy - New York (2006) "American Classic Screen Profiles" – John C. Tibbetts, James M. Welsh; Scarecrow Press (2010) "The Last Hours of Natalie Wood" – Time.

December 14, 1981

Question: Who played the leading roles in both 'Rebel Without A Cause' and 'West Side Story'?
Answer: NATALIE WOOD